Lofty Title May Not Imply More Pay

A large utility/nuke power plant in So Cal is arranging an interview for me for a position called Project Manager/Cause Evaluations (root causes). I've been in nuclear power for 30 years, but not sure what salary a Project Manager would make.  I'm currently at a nuke plant with a title of senior nuclear tech specialist (I have bachelor's degree in chemistry.), with current salary of about $100,000 per year plus bonuses of $10,000 to $15,000. Project Manager sounds like a step up in pay grade.  Any thoughts?

Answer

Titles can vary across companies so do not assume that a loftier sounding title equals more compensation.  Some companies give out senior-sounding titles to keep workers happy in exchange for paying them less.  So an administrative assistant might find themselves with an office manager title, and everyone else is some type of VP – AVP, First VP, Second VP, etc.  

You need to know exactly what the job entails and then research what similar responsibilities command in that industry and that geography.  Look at PayScale.com for some general info.  Talk to people in the industry, including trade associations that serve this industry, and get their feedback (trade groups often track some kind of salary data).  Recruiters who specialize in the nuclear industry or engineering in general would also be a good resource.  Finally, use social networking sites such as LinkedIn to find people who are or were in those types of jobs or who were at that specific company.  They may have insights you cannot get by secondary research. 

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